News In Brief

Somewhere along the line, the feminist banner "Women, unite ... take back the night!" must have made a profound impression on the mayor of Bogota, Colombia. Antanas Mockus has proposed putting a dent in the city's burgeoning crime rate. How? By imposing a one-time overnight curfew ... for all males. That way, only the opposite sex would be on the streets after dark. Said Mockus: "There's something about women that makes them more peaceful, and we need to learn from them...."

That blur racing for the upscale haberdasheries in Madrid was Cypriot Foreign Minister Yiannakis Cassoulides, who was to be guest of honor at a banquet given by King Juan Carlos. But Cassoulides is portly, and the airline that brought him to Spain somehow switched his luggage with that of a smaller traveler, leaving him only with the clothes on his back. A spokesman for the carrier said: "Naturally, he was not pleased. But he will be compensated."

It has been estimated that more than half a million business establishments in the US operate under franchise agreements. The chains are in such well-known fields as fast food, and in less-obvious ones like canine detection services. To provide some guideposts for enterprising individuals, Entrepreneur magazine has created an annual Franchise 500 for the past two decades. It considers such factors as financial strength and stability, growth rate, and size of system. This year's winner is the fast-food alternative Subway. In the category of fastest-growing, McDonald's claimed No. 1. The top franchises overall, which appear in Entrepreneur's January issue: